


once upon a dream

by im_on_craic



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, M/M, Porn With Plot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-26
Updated: 2018-05-26
Packaged: 2019-05-14 03:27:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14761722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/im_on_craic/pseuds/im_on_craic
Summary: Hinata’s not really sure what he had expected when he’d received such an anonymous job offer, with such a generous pay. Though he’d wanted to believe the job was some cleaning staff, or maybe some babysitting service, a voice in the back of his mind warns him that he’s going to be shipped off to the neighboring kingdom, where his body is going to be taken advantage of by other noble men and women. He certainly was decent looking enough for such a job. He was by no means ugly, and his body had also filled in more as time passed by. He was happy to brag about his thighs, but he had desperately hoped that wouldn’t be a thing his boss would require of him.





	once upon a dream

For a while, the job is exactly what the requirements said it would be.

 

Hinata shows up to the palace at nightfall by foot, cloaked in the red tunic he had been graciously provided with. It's different from what everyone else in the town wears-assortments of yellows and greens, sometimes blue-and it's specifically for that reason. Every guard on the palace grounds can identify him the moment he steps foot at the front gate.

 

For a while, Hinata had felt special in the cloak. He had felt unique, and extraordinary. Everyone in town knew what the emblem over his heart meant, what the gold-threaded embroidery on his sleeve signified. It was a sign of power, of being above the rest, something Hinata had seldom felt in his life. It was hard feeling superior when you lived in the outskirts of the town, where the residents could barely afford new clothing, and ate each meal hoping there would be a next.

 

It was even harder getting out of the system of poverty, especially one set generations and generations before his birth, before his grandparents' birth. He had never heard of anyone who left the slums, and Hinata had yearned to be the first one, if only to set an example for all the rest. Being born in the slums was chance, but wanting more was a choice.

 

At first, he had a never-ending hopefulness to escape the slums, a feeling fueled by selling vegetables in middle-class neighborhoods and how easy it was for the child Hinata. It was easy to charm the women with his boyish features, and gap-toothed smile. They bought vegetables from him more than they did from any of his companions in similar situations. At the age of seven, it was easy to brush off the shitload of teasing about his funny baby-toothed smile. If it brought him and his family customers, Hinata was willing to show everyone in the town his pink gums.

 

The effortless task lost its charm by the time Hinata hit fourteen, and all his teeth had fallen and grown back in by then, a little too perfect for a third-class citizen. The women in the streets saw him as just another nuisance then, a hoodlum just looking for trouble. Their daughters, the same one’s Hinata had encountered on the streets, had grown into snobbish young women who loved to call out to him. Though he wasn’t as tall as most boys, he surely wasn’t scrawny. His arms and chest were toned from the constant field work he did. And while their daughters liked to poke fun at him, it didn't rake any more money in for the Hinata family. He yearned to be like the boys who passed by him, in their perfect tunics and pressed down slacks. 

 

He so desperately wanted to be like them, carrying books that held more information than all the books at his own mediocre school combined. He wondered what they did in their free times, and what they wanted to do in the future. How many of these young men would grow up to serve in the army? How many would inherit their fathers' businesses? To Hinata, they had futures brighter than the most dazzling star.

 

By the time Hinata reached the feeble age of seventeen, he realized he had to get serious about his dream if he really wanted it to take off.

 

Convincing his father that he could find a better job than working their farm was a difficult task, but Hinata had not relented until his father had dully agreed. The happy medium they found went like this: Hinata was to find and successfully be hired for a 'better' job before the age of eighteen, and if he did not by then, he was to take over the farm work for the rest of his life, an occupation that was second nature to Hinata, but by no means his true aspiration.

 

Sure, he had felt a little tense having only one chance to decide his future, but the uneasiness wore off faster than the paint they used on the fence every summer. He was out and looking for jobs the day after their shaky compromise.

 

His first job was at a food market in a middle-class neighborhood. Like many other tasks, it had been easy for him, growing up a farmer's son, to help the customers whenever they had any questions. He was exceptionally knowledgable on a variety of fruits and vegetables, and was valued for it at work. He was especially good at keeping the vegetables fresh for long periods of time, picking up tricks from his father back home. He had liked the job, and his father liked the job, too. It was similar enough to their family trade, and everyone had been happy for a while. That is, until Hinata had discovered the owner of the market place sold spoilt milk, and was the main cause for a a diarrhea outbreak in the same town. After revealing the information in front of multiple customers, Hinata had been promptly fired.

 

Hinata's second job was in a floral shop, run by a sweet old lady who didn't mind that he showed up with dirty clothes every now and then. She gave him an apron everyday, offered him baked sweets, and even paid him above average. Hinata had never felt more at home. Getting familiar with the flora was a challenge for Hinata, who was only acquainted with the types of plants one actually ate, but the other girl who worked there didn't mind explaining things to Hinata whenever he was confused. She had soft blonde hair, and tied her hair away from her face with a blue ribbon. She was cute.

 

Hinata's opinion on her hadn't mattered after their initial introductions. After a while, he couldn't remember a time when he hadn't gone to Yachi for advice, hadn't talked to her about his situation, and hadn't seen her in general. Their routine was simple; Yachi worked around the shop while Hinata manned the payment and watering stations. It was easy, and Hinata loved going to work.

 

Two months into working at the floral shop, their elderly boss passed away. Hinata had felt saddened, and didn't understand why Yachi was unusually so, until she informed him that she had been her guardian. Yachi inherited the shop then, and although she was often times clouded in grief, the takeover of a younger soul increased the shop's sales. Customers swarmed by the dozens, and Hinata wondered if it was out of pity or admiration for the change Yachi brought with her.

 

Just like the customers came in and out, the employees did, too. Yachi was always willing to accept any hands willing to help, even if it meant hiring eight other employees to work at the same time. They all knew way more than Hinata (who had worked there longer) did, and after a while, he wasn't really needed anymore. He had felt bad his coworkers received low pays just so they could all receive the equal pay, even more-so when he realized he wasn’t as useful as the rest of them. He wistfully resigned to Yachi two months before his eighteenth birthday.

 

It was a fight everyday after that. He struggled to find a better job, wandering throughout the streets of the middle-class neighborhoods, and, on rare occasions, into the town of the nobles. Scampering around the nobles was a hassle, and Hinata found he didn't like peeking around the street corners like some beggar-although he technically was. He also didn't appreciate the looks the nobles gave him, which were a thousand times worse any middle-class citizen could give him. It was like they knew his entire life story, and all they could do was bat an eyelash at him. Hinata was spooked.

 

The only benefit that came from the town of the nobles was that the rich people were always looking for someone to do all the work they themselves were too superior to do. Like cleaning. Or washing your own clothes. Hinata didn't get it. But there were signs everywhere, on every single post, looking for people to assist the nobles in their everyday lives. Of course, the reason there were so many, was because underclass citizens never dared to come to the town of the nobles, and the ones who did, were always the most desperate. Hinata wondered why they even bothered to place signs there as opposed to in the slums, but he guessed the nobles were too haughty to even travel into any town below their own. 

 

His eighteenth birthday was looming over him, and with each day that passed, Hinata became more and more desperate, sneaking out nearly every night to search for jobs. Their kingdom was coming out of the winter months, and even though a large cloak was no longer required in the day, the nights were still frigid, and Hinata could do nothing about it. 

 

The thought of living on the same farm for the rest of his life, in the same run-down neighborhood was terrifying for Hinata, who had always dreamed big and high. His desire to leave was beginning to dwindle, a thought that saddened his mind. As the weeks leading up to his birthday continued to creep on him, he was slowly resigning himself to a desolate life. His only consolation was the idea of remodeling the house, and trying to repair it.

 

After another day of signing sheet after sheet in the nobles’ town, Hinata decided to retire for the day, his own conscience too low-spirited to continue any longer. He was stuffing his feathered quill into his sack, when the sheet he had just finished signing, flew off its post. Hinata scrambled to grab it, probably looking like the crazy hoodlum all these nobles thought he was. After grabbing purchase of the paper, cheeks red from exertion, he had returned to set it back on it's post, only to find another sheet right behind the one that had just flown off.

 

Hinata's mind was perturbed, and Hinata stumbled to recall if that sheet had been there since the beginning. He squinted at the carefully inscribed words, too vague to truly give Hinata an idea of what business was searching, but immediately catching the air of unusualness that surrounded the sign. It was a sign just like the rest, calling for help from a citizen on nights only. Huh, Hinata had thought, a night maintenance staff perhaps? It didn't matter to him, _a job was a job_. He ruffled through his bag, and produced his quill. The remnants of the ink from before dried on the end, urging Hinata to hastily scribble his information on the sheet.

 

_A job is a job_ , he thought, day or night.

 

 

A letter comes in the mail two days later, asking for Hinata to present himself at x location, and although Hinata scrambles to recall if this place had ever even existed, all he can think of in his mind is a desolate pub on the south side of a middle-class town, which if he’s being realistic, isn’t that much of an upgrade from Yachi’s floral shop. It doesn't bother him for long, and he quickly informs his father about his upcoming job assessment. His dad is surprisingly more concerned than Hinata is, and even offers to walk him there, just in case, he says. And although he's a tad bit embarrassed to be ushered by his parent at such an age, the lingering anxiety he had tried to ignore, the anxiety that had settled in the back of his mind, fades away quickly at the thought of having one of his most trusted people to accompany him.

 

Needless to say, by the time dusk rolls around, Hinata is feeling confident with his father by his side. They walk along the outskirts of the middle-class town first, because Hinata knows that no matter what age he reaches, his father will always feel shameful of their societal ranking, and his own inability to break the Hinatas free of their impoverished shackles. So they walk around, until they reach the quiet street where Hinata's interview is at. His dad walks him to the door of the building, kisses his forehead, and departs into the night. 

 

His dad has always had a hard time showing Hinata emotions, even small things, like showing he's proud of Hinata for making the effort to better their family. The simple act of walking Hinata here, and kissing him goodbye is enough to boost Hinata's spirit tenfold. He stays outside until his dad turns the corner, sending out a silent prayer for him to get home safely.

 

He pushes the door open and is immediately submerged with the heavy aroma of ale. Despite his previous knowledge of this being a mostly desolate bar, the place is buzzing with people. There's men at every single table, and the servers hustle from table to table, offering drinks out of wooden cups. Hinata shuffles by, pulling his gray tunic over his head, because he is not technically of age to be in a tavern yet. He pushes his way to the back, until he's at the main bar.

 

He shuffles to unfold the letter he'd received, and presents it to the stocky guy who had been manning the bar, and whose emotionless demeanor immediately shifts to a look of subtle surprise. He barely masks his shock, and motions Hinata around the bar, where he leads him to a room in the back. 

 

Hinata’s not really sure what he had expected when he’d received such an anonymous job offer, with such a generous pay. Though he’d wanted to believe the job was some cleaning staff, or maybe some babysitting service, a voice in the back of his mind warns him that he’s going to be shipped off to the neighboring kingdom, where his body is going to be taken advantage of by other noble men and women. He certainly was decent looking enough for such a job. He was by no means ugly, and his body had also filled in more as time passed by. He was happy to brag about his thighs, but he had desperately hoped that wouldn’t be a thing his boss would require of him. 

 

He’s certainly not expecting to be greeted with the deep red robes of the royal family, framing the features of the current princess. Her long brown hair flows down her shoulders in a cascade of toffee curls. Her skin is clear and unblemished, shining with the radiance of a mighty sovereign who has next to no conflicts in her land to worry about, and the gold circlet around her head makes her look like the strongest person in the room, despite the several bulky men lined along the walls. Hinata, through all his shock, immediately falls to a knee, bowing his head down to the princess. He can feel her stare burning through the top of his head, and he briefly remembers his cloak is still covering him. He hurriedly pulls it down, fingers shaking under the presence of the future queen. 

 

His apprehension halts when he hears the tinkling laugh of the young woman, and he hesitantly raises his head back up to look at her. Her head is thrown back, and her lips are stretched into a wide smile as chuckles come rumbling out of her. He accidentally catches her eye, and hurriedly turns his head away, cheeks blazing in embarrassment. "Rise, Hinata-kun," she says, voice sweet and lilting, and Hinata does.

 

When he stands, so does she. She walks around him, her long robes dragging across the worn wooden planks, taking him in. Hinata fidgets. He shuffles his feet, and hopes she doesn't notice how worn down his leather shoes are, or how the ends of his slacks didn't reach all the way down, and how he'd been wearing that same pairs of slacks for three years now because he'd rather his mother make Natsu pretty dresses than spend time making him new slacks.

 

The princess doesn't say anything once she's done, sitting back down in the only chair in the room, one leg crossed over the other. She levels him with her serious brown eyes, and leans on her chin on the palm of one hand. "Hinata-kun, how old are you?" She questions.

 

"I-I'm turning eighteen in a month," he stammers out, forcing himself to stand up pin straight. The princess hums, and asks him if he has any other jobs going on right now. "No," he laments. She asks what his family does, and where they live. "We're farmers," he mumbles, face falling as he recalls their tiny home, where his mom tries her best to cook for them, and his dad brings in as much meat as they can afford for them, "we live in the outskirts of the palace—the-the slums.”

 

The princess nods, and motions for one of her guards over. She whispers into his ear something Hinata can't catch, but the guards slowly file out of the room, until Hinata is alone with the royal, a thought scarier than being in a room with her and the muscle-packed men. "Hinata-kun," the princess says, and his gaze flickers away from the slowly closing door. "Are you a good friend?" She asks, a small smile adorning her face. 

 

The question catches him off guard, and his mouth moves, but no sounds come out. Was he a good friend? Well, he wasn't sure. He had a good share of friends, and he liked to think he treated them all nicely, but what did they think? Hinata didn't know. What if Yachi was secretly happy that he had resigned? Hinata hardly doubted it, since they had become such close friends over the course of his employment, but that was what he thought. What did Yachi think? He didn't know. So that's what he tells the princess. "I don't know, Your Highness."

 

The princess's eyes crinkle at the ends, and she smiles even more. "Thank you for your honesty," she says, and Hinata purses his lips. He thinks this 'job interview' is almost over, and mentally prepares himself to leave with even the smallest dignity in tact, when the princess says, "do you know of my little brother?"

 

Hinata says, "Prince Tooru?" The princess nods, and motions for him to sit, and Hinata unsteadily settles down his behind on the wooden floor. "Yes, I know who he is."

 

The princess gives a tight-lipped smile, hands clenching where they rest on her lap. "Tooru-kun has just turned nineteen," she begins, and Hinata nods, aware of the constant fluttering of the kingdom’s women, and how big of a deal it had been when the prince had turned of age last year. "And he is not the best at making friends outside of the castle." Hinata wants to laugh. Every time he had heard of the prince, the women rattled on and on about how charming he was, and the knights who visited the local taverns would brag about how the prince had invited them to his sparring practices. The idea of the highly-acclaimed prince having a hard time socializing seemed unrealistic to Hinata.

 

The princess says, "I would like you to be friends with my brother."

 

Hinata chokes. "Pardon?" He questions once the itch in his throat dissipates. The princess's eyes widen, as if this isn't some crazy idea for a poor boy like Hinata to understand. "You want me to do what?"

 

The princess's steady gaze instantly shifts, the light above her casting dark shadows across her cheeks as she bends over to level her face with Hinata's. "Acquaint yourself with my brother, Shouyo," the princess repeats, but it doesn't sound like a proposal, rather an order, the sweet tone of her voice now void. Hinata gulps, the use of his first name sending chills down his spine. He nods his head, lower lip quivering. She sits back up, and the chilling aura dissolves. The princess stands, and Hinata scrambles to a knee. She progresses towards the door, her royal crimson robes brushing against his side. "Shouyo-kun," the princess says, and Hinata's eyes move from the floor to the back of her head. She turns, and her circlet glints against the single candlelight hanging from the ceiling. "Your tunic will arrive tomorrow, so please be at the castle gates by dusk." Hinata nods, jaw clenched. She nods her head at him, and turns again.

 

The knob squeaks as she turns it, and Hinata squeezes his eyes shut. "And Shouyo-" his heart thuds in his ears, "-please take care of my brother," she murmurs, and Hinata whips his head to face her, only to catch the flowing of her robes as the door slowly creaks shut.

 

He sighs, heart decelerating for the first time since he's stepped into the room. He falls back onto his rear again, though this time his legs sprawl across the floor. He raises a shaky hand to his face, wiping the sweat that had formed at his temples away, afterwards clutching at his hair like a madman. _A job is a job_ , he repeats in his head, like a mantra he can't forget. _A job is a job_. 

 

 

 

The princess was definitely not fibbing when she said the robes would be at his home the next day. It's the fastest delivery Hinata, and anyone for that matter, has ever received a package. He doesn’t dare question the power of the palace then, and the anxiousness that had crawled up his spine during last night’s trek home returns. 

 

His mom is surprised when she unwraps the flimsy paper and pulls out a deep red tunic. Hinata faintly remembers the comatose state she'd been in when he'd returned home, and how he had only told his father the news. So, they sit down and he explains the prior night's events, not missing the sheen of tears in his mother's eyes when he'd quickly mentioned his new paycheck. 

 

His family's imperceptible reliance on this money pushes any remaining doubt out of his mind.

 

As his mother's tears pass over, so does the day. Hinata's glad to be able to sleep a few more hours, and even more so when his mother wakes him at noon with a bowl of porridge. He doesn't mind the dry taste of it, or how they eat the same meals every three days, but rather feels ecstatic to be home this late into the day, an unusual occurrence ever since Hinata began working. He's able to see Natsu off to school, watching her and the other children toddle down the street behind their kind teacher. The idea of one day sending her off to a real school, and not just some rusty building with no writing utensils, makes his heart thud in his ears.

 

The joy of staying home ends right after that, and Hinata can not actually remember the last time he'd stayed home ever since he started working. Even just trying to remember makes his head ache, so Hinata stops, and asks his mother instead. She, too, can't remember the last time he'd stayed home during the day, and hypothesizes that maybe it had been two years ago, when he'd caught a fever. Hinata leaves it at that, and heads out into the field in search of some work to do. He's left to sort through the peas, a job he's hated since he was a child.

 

By the late afternoon, he's promoted to picking the wheat stalks, and later, he graduates into the farmhouse, where his mother makes him gather up all the hens' eggs that day. Most of the farm animals don't mind his presence, since he had been there during half of their births. But the hens have always had it coming for Hinata. He picks up a few scratches that day, and refuses to go crying to is mother about it. 

 

Shortly before the sun begins to set, he washes up with the water they hadn't used that morning for breakfast. It's frigid, leaving his skin icy cold, leaving him shivering for a good few hours, but he'd rather die than show up to the palace covered in field grime. He pulls on his best slacks, and a cotton shirt, before pulling on the red tunic he had been provided with. 

 

Hinata's first thought is how incredibly soft the tunic is. It fits him loosely, but somehow captures all of his own heat, as well as providing some extra. The second thing he realizes is that the insignia over his heart is a thousand times more authentic than the counterfeit materials merchants try to sell in the markets. Hinata had thought it was just a simple design, but a closer look at the emblem reveals microscopic details that no ordinary designer could mimic. 

 

With that realization, everything comes crashing into Hinata at once. 

 

He will be with the prince of the kingdom, most likely alone. Hinata shivers. What does the prince like to do? Surely, he’s a kindhearted prince who won’t just discard him at first sight. The way his family had been so cheerful of his new income, Hinata hopes this job will last a while, and gain him some connections along the way.  

 

He also hopes the prince’s reputation is just as the rumors say, and he’s a decent archduke. After all, he is representing his kingdom with whatever action he makes. Maybe this is just all a publicity stunt to make the royal family seem more common than their royal blood makes them to be? Although the idea of being used just as a decoy to win the hearts' of the kingdom makes him a bit uneasy, Hinata is willing to be an amenable asset to the royal family.

 

He leaves his home soon after, and the trip to the palace seems uncharacteristically short. Of course, Hinata has never been to the palace, but it had always felt more faraway from his little home in the slums. Upon nearing it, its towering height and many pillars makes his heart beat in his ears. He quickly follows the instructions that had arrived along with his tunic.

 

There's a door guarded by two men by one of the pillars of the castle, and Hinata hustles his way over, presenting himself to the two guards exactly how the instructions tell him to. The guards share a mutual look of something Hinata can't clearly see in the dark of night, and open the door for him. He enters, gives his thanks, and continues down the hall until he reaches a large hall, guarded by even more men. He presents himself the same as before, and is told to wait in the hall. HInata nods, and takes a knee. Suddenly, he feels the cold sweat crawl up his back. His heart is thumping erratically now, and the quiet of the room makes it all the more noticeable. He takes a deep breath, counting to three in his head, before letting the air escape. He licks his lips.

 

The door to the chamber hall opens, and the hair on Hinata's neck stands up. Quiet footsteps sound through the hall, making Hinata clench his jaw. The footsteps continue, until Hinata can spot a pair of clean leather boots from the corner of his vision. "Rise." Hinata rises quickly, his head spinning at the force. He regains his composure, and stares straight ahead. The sound of his dry swallow sounds too loud in the quiet of the room. 

 

"I don't know much about friends," a voice says, and Hinata barely manages to hear it over his own ragged breathing, "but I'm very sure they aren't supposed to be this anxious around each other."

 

As the last words die out, Hinata quickly turns to face the owner of the silky smooth voice, all efforts to maintain a good appearance falling, as he becomes desperate to appease the sovereign. "Your M-Majest-" his words are cut off by the sudden grab of his jaw, and Hinata flinches. Eyes so brown they can almost be red stare him down, and Hinata is struck with the handsomeness of the prince all at once. His cheeks burn in embarrassment, but he can't talk with this large hand clasping the lower-half of his face.

 

"I am no king," the prince mutters, steel eyes narrowing, "therefore, I am no 'Majesty.'" Hinata nods, humiliated by his mistake. He's never had problem using the correct terms for royalty, granted he's only met one. "Good," he says, and the tight grip on Hinata's face lessens until it is but a soft caress. The prince’s deep eyes do the same, until Hinata is analyzed by a more hungry glance. ”Hinata-kun,” he murmurs, voice like melted chocolate, "how old are you?"

 

Hinata still cannot understand why the royal family is so interested with his age, until he feels the way Prince Tooru strokes his face, cocoa eyes gazing across his features. He steps closer to Hinata, his dark purple cape, a color seemingly exclusive to the prince, following behind him. Hinata's lip quivers, and, like a predator waiting for its prey, Prince Tooru grabs it right away. His calloused thumb runs across his bottom lip, and Hinata can't help the shiver that crawls up his spine. "S-Seventeen," he stutters out, and the prince's activities come to a halt. His head returns from its bowed position, to stare Hinata down from above his nose. 

 

"And how long will you be seventeen for?" The prince questions, face as emotionless as it was when he had first entered the room. 

 

Hinata wastes no time in responding, blurting out, "less than a month," faster than lightning. 

 

The prince's jaw twitches, and Hinata is almost fearful again, until his lip curls into a devilish smirk, too handsome to adorn the face of a royal. Hinata is terrified then, by the prince and himself, for he can't stop the feeling of excitement that slowly inches its way into his chest, and squeezes itself into the crevices. The prince bends down to his height again, and murmurs a pleased, "perfect," under his breath, before ducking down, nose tracing the side of Hinata’s neck. 

 

Hinata’s breath catches in his throat, and the prince wastes no time clasping a palm over his mouth. “Sh,” he soothes, one hand slowly crawling around Hinata’s waist, his red cape crumpled under the prince’s hand. 

 

Hinata wants to yank the cloak away, scold the other man for ruining such royal material. But as soon as the urge comes, it flees at the realization this man is the embodiment of royalty, and that he most likely wipes his ass with the material Hinata wears. And when the prince murmurs, “how _lovely_ ,” against the skin of Hinata’s neck, his knees buckle. Had it not been for the hand placed at the small of his back, Hinata fears he would’ve taken an embarrassing stumble backwards. 

 

“My sister made a grave mistake introducing me to such an exquisite little thing,” the prince sighs, strong hands tugging Hinata closer until their fronts are completely pressed and Hinata can feel the beginnings of an arousal pressing against his abdomen. With a startling horror, he realizes it’s his own. Hinata says something, but if you’d ask him, he probably doesn’t know what exactly it was. Nonetheless, the prince moves his palm from Hinata’s mouth, humming in response to Hinata’s muffled commentary. 

 

“Y-Your Highness,” Hinata breathes, nearly passes out when a second hand presses onto his backside, smoothing itself over the surface of Hinata’s butt. “I-I was not aware you were looking for a consort,” he mumbles, dazedly clutching onto the prince’s upper arms like they’re a lifeline. 

 

He’s a little too surprised by the sharp cackle Prince Tooru emits, and like a whip, it shocks Hinata out of whatever trance his teenage body had him under. At the same time, the prince rudely pushes him off, shaking his arms as if to rid himself of Hinata’s touch. “Do not kid yourself, you poor bumpkin,” he scoffs, and one finger picks at the material of his sleeve, each movement only making Hinata feel worse and worse. “I seek no marriage with anyone as of current,” he says, and with one final sweep through of his appearance and an arrogant glance at Hinata, he starts for the throne at the head of the room. 

 

“Especially with a slum leech like yourself,” he snorts, one hand dramatically fanning his cape around himself before he promptly sits on the throne. Hinata casts his gaze down, eyes suddenly wet. “I was merely looking for a new source of entertainment,” he continues on, and Hinata’s jaw clenches. “My meddling older sister thinks I am in need of a friend,” he says with another scoff, and Hinata visibly flinches at the sound. “What I want right now,” he says, and Hinata hears the rustling of fabric as the prince returns to his side, “is someone to toy around with.” A strong hand presses itself to Hinata’s backside, and Hinata sharply inhales. 

 

“I will not touch you until you are of age,” he murmurs, soft puffs of air against the shell of Hinata’s ear, “and if you wish to resign from your position, do not show up again tomorrow night.”

 

With that, the prince makes his exit, purple cape flowing behind him as his figure disappears through another door in the throne room, and Hinata can finally breathe again. Without a second thought, he flees. 

  
  
  


His trek home is taken through the main streets of the nobles' village, a route he is not familiar with. With his red cloak though, he feels as though he has all the right to be there. However, the red cloak brings with it the perplexing memories of just a few moments prior, when First Prince Tooru of the Oikawa Kingdom, Second General of the Imperial Army, had basically scented him like some property. 

 

Had Hinata’s belief of magic not been debunked years ago, he would have taken the prince for some werewolf hybrid. More specifically, one going through a heat, if the way he had grabbed onto Hinata was anything to go by. 

 

The thought of those large hands pressing into his spine, sends a shiver through Hinata, one he can’t blame on the night chill. He is, in nearly every sense of the word, a blushing virgin. Though he has no qualms about gender nor orientation, he is so very unfamiliar with anything to do with intimacy, that any recollection of his time with Prince Tooru  sends his face aflame. He tries to remain as intact as possible, though, because the cloak’s significance will not shield him from appearing like some drugged official. 

 

Yet he cannot avoid the thoughts for long, and soon the aroma that had followed the prince is breeching Hinata’s mental walls, until Hinata is drowning in the memories again. The raspy, yet lilting voice of the prince replays in his mind, and Hinata can only focus on the streets before him in a final effort to avoid it. 

 

When he finally returns home in the dead of night, his family all sound asleep, Hinata finally releases the strained breath he’d been holding all night. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> $5 says ill forget about this fic by the end of june
> 
> follow me on tumblr if u wanna see me cry about this fic :) ----> salt-yu


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